Tasting a dough you knead can be tempting. It’s sweet, soft, chewy, and if it contains pieces of chocolate, how to resist? Sometimes, trying just a bit to see if it is sweet enough can turn into eating a whole package or bowl of raw cookie dough.
Counting calories on the side, did you ever wonder what could happen if you eat raw cookie dough? Is it safe? Can it cause stomach problems? Or Salmonella?
Safety comes first; that’s why we present you with this article with the most common questions about raw cookie dough.
Contents
- 1 Is raw cookie dough safe to eat?
- 2 How long after eating raw cookie dough would you get sick?
- 3 Has anyone gotten sick from raw cookie dough?
- 4 Has anyone ever died from eating raw cookie dough?
- 5 What are the chances of getting Salmonella from cookie dough?
- 6 Can you get worms from eating raw cookie dough?
- 7 Is Pillsbury cookie dough safe to eat raw?
- 8 Can raw cookie dough make your stomach hurt?
- 9 Can eating raw cookie dough make you gain weight?
- 10 Is frozen cookie dough safe to eat?
- 11 Does freezing flour kill bacteria?
Homemade raw cookie dough isn’t safe to eat because it contains uncooked eggs and flour. The main problem with raw cookie dough is these two ingredients. They can cause food poisoning if contaminated with dangerous bacteria, such as Salmonella. Although eating raw cookie dough can be tempting, it’s not worth the risk.
Tip: If you really cannot resist eating raw cookie dough, buy one in a store. Some manufacturers guarantee their cookie dough is safe to eat – raw or baked. The flour is heat-treated, and they replace regular eggs with pasteurized ones. How is that possible, you may wonder?
Salmonella is usually the one to blame for food poisoning. Symptoms of Salmonella poisoning will be evident in 6 hours to 6 days after you ate contaminated food – in this case, raw cookie dough. Symptoms include intense diarrhea, vomiting, stomach cramps, and fever.
Tip: If you have some food poisoning symptoms, contact the nearest medical facility as soon as possible.
Food poisoning from eating raw cookie dough is not that often, but many people get sick this way. According to medical doctors, 1 in every 20.000 eggs is contaminated with Salmonella.
The risk is not that high but increases if the dough isn’t stored correctly.
Tip: Even if the risk is small, doctors say you should keep your hands off raw cookie dough.
Yes. A woman named Linda Rivera died from eating raw cookie dough in 2009. Her death wasn’t caused by Salmonella but by similar bacteria – Escherichia Coli.
This bacteria was found in a Nestle cookie dough, and the product was recalled, but sadly she didn’t know about it. Seventy-seven people got sick, 35 of them ended up in a hospital, and one died.
Linda ate a few spoons of raw cookie dough, and soon, she was in the hospital.
She experienced health issues for a few years due to raw cookie dough, and eventually, she died.
Practically, you could get Salmonella by eating raw cookie dough, but you probably won’t. It’s estimated that 1 in every 20.000 eggs is contaminated with Salmonella. Although the risk is not that high, bakers could decrease it by pasteurizing eggs. Pasteurized eggs could change the taste of cookie dough, but they would be perfectly safe to eat.
Is salmonella fatal?
Salmonella can be fatal if bacteria enter your bloodstream. It can be especially dangerous for people with compromised immune systems, such as cancer, HIV, and other serious illnesses.
Salmonella is also more dangerous for young children and older adults. In some cases, usually in younger children, Salmonella can cause kidney failure and eventually death.
If appropriately treated after the first symptoms are spotted, Salmonella can be cured efficiently.
What happens if you get salmonella?
If you get Salmonella, you’ll inevitably have symptoms, such as diarrhea, stomach cramps, fever.
Symptoms can begin 6 hours to 6 days after you eat food that contains raw eggs contaminated with Salmonella. In some cases, the symptoms don’t develop in weeks, but please seek medical help as soon as they occur.
Most manufacturers use pasteurized eggs and heat-treated flour for cookie dough mixture. These procedures minimize the chance of getting Salmonella, but the product has a longer shelf life as a result.
Tip: If you’re a fan of raw cookie dough, buy special, safe-to-eat raw cookie dough such as Pillsbury’s at your local store.
No. You can have gastrointestinal problems, such as cramps, stomach hurt, diarrhea, but you won’t get worms.
Worms and similar parasites are more common in raw meat and seafood. When you get sick from raw cookie dough, harmful bacteria are to blame.
By 2020, Pillsbury raw cookie dough will become safe to eat.
Whole families can now safely enjoy their favorite cookies – baked or unbaked. Pillsbury produces cookie dough with the highest manufacturing and ingredients standards, which means they pasteurize eggs they use in dough production and heat treat flour.
Yes, raw cookie dough can cause severe problems with your stomach. Salmonella, which lives in the eggs, is not the only one to blame. Raw flour can contain Escherichia Coli, harmful bacteria which can cause stomach cramps and bloody diarrhea. These symptoms can last up to a week.
Tip: Even licking your fingers after touching the dough can make you sick. Wash your hands carefully after handling raw cookie dough.
Raw or baked cookie dough can make you gain weight.
You might think small bites here, and there won’t get you fat, but they can drastically increase your total calorie intake. Cookie dough contains high amounts of sugar, flour, and added fats.
If you want to lose weight, we recommend controlling your intake of raw cookie dough. Just 100 grams of cookie dough contains 424 calories. A 1-inch ball of Pillsbury cookie dough contains 130 calories.
| Type of cookie | Fat (g) | Carbs (g) | Protein (g) | Calories (kcal) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chocolate chip cookie with butter | 4.54 | 9.31 | 0.91 | 78 |
| Chocolate chip cookie with margarine | 4.53 | 9.34 | 0.91 | 78 |
| Low-fat chocolate chip cookie | 1.54 | 7.33 | 0.58 | 45 |
| Higher fat chocolate chip cookie | 2.47 | 6.41 | 0.55 | 49 |
| Raw chocolate cookie (Nestle ToolHouse) | 4 | 11 | 1 | 80 |
No, homemade frozen cookie dough is not safe to eat. Heat is the only way to kill bacteria and germs successfully. Freezing can help you save your dough for a few months, but you’ll have to bake it after defrosting it.
Tip: If you want to eat frozen cookie dough instead of ice cream, use store-bought, safe-to-eat-raw cookie dough, like Pillsbury.
Does freezing flour kill bacteria?
Freezing doesn’t kill bacteria, but the heat does. If you freeze raw cookie dough made from contaminated flour, bacteria will still be harmful. Once the food thaws, bacteria will get moisture, which helps them stay alive.
Tip: Microwave your flour to 160 degrees F. If you don’t have a thermometer, use a high setting on your microwave and heat flour for about 75 seconds. Stir every 15 seconds. You can also heat your flour in the oven if you don’t own a microwave.
Citations:
- https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/communication/no-raw-dough.html#:~:text=Don’t%20taste%20or%20eat,if%20you%20taste%20raw%20dough.
- https://www.inverse.com/science/is-raw-cookie-dough-safe-to-eat
- https://health.clevelandclinic.org/why-eggs-are-not-the-only-danger-in-raw-cookie-dough/
